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State Capitol Building, Room 217 • Oklahoma City, OK 73105 • (405) 521-3191 • www.treasurer.ok.gov
A publication of the Office of the State Treasurer • Treasurer Ken Miller, Ph.D.
Economic Report TM
Volume 2, Issue 9 • September 30, 2012
Oklahoma
News and analysis of Oklahoma’s economy
Inside
SEE DEMYSTIFYING PAGE 4
• Treasurer’s commentary:
Theoretically speaking, of
course
• GASB pension reporting
changes coming
• Miller elected to national
treasurers’ leadership
• Oil and gas again pull
collections into negative
territory
• State unemployment rises
Staff
Regina Birchum, Deputy Treasurer
for Policy
Editor
Tim Allen, Deputy Treasurer for
Communications
It’s no surprise that state finances are
a mystery to most people outside of
government; what is surprising is how
mysterious it remains to many of those
on the inside. With so many different
taxes and fees and even more special
funds and formulas, a complete picture
of what the state collects and spends is
understandably elusive.
Decades of legislative actions have
resulted in just half of the money
collected by the state being deposited
into the General Revenue Fund (GRF),
the main funding source for state
government.
Some of the collections that never make
it into the GRF are paid as refunds
and the rest is
transferred to
several dozen
special funds
and uses for
such worthy
purposes as
transportation
and education.
Another
example is footnote 29 from the tax
commission’s allocation spreadsheet
relating to the Alcoholic Beverage Tax,
in which “any amount over the 2/3
of 97% from FY 10 goes to the Okla.
Viticulture and Enology Center up to
$350,000 each fiscal
year.”
Such carve outs ensure
ongoing funding
without legislative
appropriations.
The amount that is
remitted to the GRF,
while significant, does
not tell the whole story of how much
taxpayer money is used to provide
Demystifying the General Revenue Fund
“State government
collects twice as
much money as is
placed into General
Revenue.”
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
Sep-11
Oct-11
Nov-11
Dec-11
Jan-12
Feb-12
Mar-12
Apr-12
May-12
Jun-12
Jul-12
Aug-12
Source: Office of the State Treasurer
Percentage of Gross Receipts to
General Revenue Fund
September 2011 - August 2012
56.4%
34.9%
12-month average: 50.3%

State Capitol Building, Room 217 • Oklahoma City, OK 73105 • (405) 521-3191 • www.treasurer.ok.gov
A publication of the Office of the State Treasurer • Treasurer Ken Miller, Ph.D.
Economic Report TM
Volume 2, Issue 9 • September 30, 2012
Oklahoma
News and analysis of Oklahoma’s economy
Inside
SEE DEMYSTIFYING PAGE 4
• Treasurer’s commentary:
Theoretically speaking, of
course
• GASB pension reporting
changes coming
• Miller elected to national
treasurers’ leadership
• Oil and gas again pull
collections into negative
territory
• State unemployment rises
Staff
Regina Birchum, Deputy Treasurer
for Policy
Editor
Tim Allen, Deputy Treasurer for
Communications
It’s no surprise that state finances are
a mystery to most people outside of
government; what is surprising is how
mysterious it remains to many of those
on the inside. With so many different
taxes and fees and even more special
funds and formulas, a complete picture
of what the state collects and spends is
understandably elusive.
Decades of legislative actions have
resulted in just half of the money
collected by the state being deposited
into the General Revenue Fund (GRF),
the main funding source for state
government.
Some of the collections that never make
it into the GRF are paid as refunds
and the rest is
transferred to
several dozen
special funds
and uses for
such worthy
purposes as
transportation
and education.
Another
example is footnote 29 from the tax
commission’s allocation spreadsheet
relating to the Alcoholic Beverage Tax,
in which “any amount over the 2/3
of 97% from FY 10 goes to the Okla.
Viticulture and Enology Center up to
$350,000 each fiscal
year.”
Such carve outs ensure
ongoing funding
without legislative
appropriations.
The amount that is
remitted to the GRF,
while significant, does
not tell the whole story of how much
taxpayer money is used to provide
Demystifying the General Revenue Fund
“State government
collects twice as
much money as is
placed into General
Revenue.”
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
Sep-11
Oct-11
Nov-11
Dec-11
Jan-12
Feb-12
Mar-12
Apr-12
May-12
Jun-12
Jul-12
Aug-12
Source: Office of the State Treasurer
Percentage of Gross Receipts to
General Revenue Fund
September 2011 - August 2012
56.4%
34.9%
12-month average: 50.3%